October 27, 2018 — In the world of software and web development, all of the cool kids are talking about Agile as the only way to manage projects.

The old fashioned way of managing projects, aka Waterfall, is outdated, clumsy and not fit for purpose in this new fast paced era. Or is it?

The WordPress community is incredibly diverse and projects come in all shapes and sizes. Surely then it makes sense if we have a range of project management approaches that can be tailored to the individual project.

With examples of real projects from our agency, I’ll make the case that not only can Waterfall be the best approach for some WordPress projects but that there are a spectrum of different approaches to choose from and there is no one perfect way of doing things.

October 27, 2018 — We are good at building websites but are we good at promoting them?

Is it enough to just build a site and move on?

We need to understand that these days Websites are not much different than business cards so we need think about how we are going to find the people to give our business cards to.

October 26, 2018 — In this talk, I will tell how to cache rarely updated data to reduce the number of database queries and improve page load time by using built-in functionality in WordPress. Whether you are an experienced developer or not, you will find advice to develop your working!

October 26, 2018 — This presentation focuses on three main topics:
Design principles and frameworks for developing dynamic and personalized content
Data principles and frameworks for identifying and segmenting our audiences.
Utilization of WordPress and other low cost tools to execute these strategies

October 26, 2018 — Cynthia Ng (@TheRealArty) gives us her views on Accessibility on Content and WordPress websites with a special focus on the laws in Ontario, Canada.
Presentation given at Cowichan Valley WordPress Meetup.

Presentation Slides »

October 26, 2018 — WordPress Multisite use case for white label SaaS from Sam Burdge

October 26, 2018 — We all use the internet, heck as WordPress users most of us even help make it. WordPress is the GUI-based website builder that is easy to learn but hard to master. It is used by millions of people in countless ways — from tricking out a pre-existing website, to tracking complex statistics, or just to troll your friends. WordPress as a platform has shaped the Web like no other. So what has this amazing open-source creation really done to the Web?

Come to my session as we dig deep and find the profound changes WordPress has made on the Internet. We will explore WordPress as both a platform and a concept to understand how coloring outside of the lines and letting go of the reins can actually improve your customer’s satisfaction and your product overall.

October 23, 2018 — The database is perhaps the most important piece of your infrastructure. The database contains all your important e-commerce data and must be kept secured. The database performance often defines the overall performance of your WordPress site. In this talk I the most important things every WordPress developer should know about MariaDB/MySQL to be able to build and operate their site optimally.

October 22, 2018 — No matter if your product, business plans or plugin is functional and well crafted: there comes a time where a user or client knocks at your door, and they aren’t happy at all with you.

Supporting users is not an easy job, not to mention when they’re angry or upset, and this can affect your emotional and professional balance.

In this talk I’m going to share some useful tips and tricks I deploy when dealing with upset customers, to turn them into a potential happy users.

I’ll also share my advice on how to maintain an assertive and positive attitude when things go south.

This talk aims to all the people who can possibly interact with users and are looking to fine-tune their customer support skills.

October 22, 2018 — You’ve probably heard the phrase, “You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression”.

It can be applied to everything from meeting your future in-laws for the first time, to selling your home, to…you guessed it, having an compelling website.

Is your website content presented in the best way possible to attract and keep readers? Stumped on how to take a great photo or find a fabulous graphic?

How can I put my best foot forward if I’m not a trained journalist, graphic designer, or professional photographer?

We’ll talk about practical resources and advice that beginners to seasoned veterans can use to improve their content and their perception to their audience.

Presentation Slides »